Since we are now two games into the Spread Eagle Era of Auburn football, I thought I'd offer a few thoughts, both of yesterday's game and where we may be headed. The Good:
The offense was much improved. Yeah, there were plenty of mistakes, but it looked like they had a purpose to be on the field this week. It wasn't the breakout performance everyone was wanting, but there was steady progression from week one, and enough mistakes to let the coaches ride some ass this week at practice to get the team ready for the three upcoming critically important conference games.
Chris Todd. It was time for one of the qb's step up and deliver, and Todd did that with a sold performance going 21-31 for 248 yards. I'm also, not buying into talks of a qb controversy or any of the Kodi didn't get a fair chance hogwash . Personally, I don't give a chit who plays qb. I just want to win games. I hope that at some point Kodi does put it all together, because he is a dynamic athlete.
The Defense is good. Just how good they are remains to be seen, but Southern Mississippi is no slouch offensivly. This is a team that has a couple legitamate playmakers in Shawn Nelson and Austin Davis, and it seems to be apparent now why DeAndre Green was such a hotly sought recruit. Auburn's defensive front dominated the line of scrimmage, and more importantly guys like Michael Goggans and Mike Blanc had big games. Both were in the USM backfield early and often. Building depth by getting some of the guys to step up at the DL positions was a big concern going into the season. The early returns indicate that the Dline may end up being much better than advertised. The linebackers look solid, and the defensive back play has been stellar to this point with cornerbacks actually turing around to make a play on the ball instead of playing slappy hands with the receiver as the ball comes. Coach Rhoads impact seems to be evident as well. A noted stickler for coaching fundamentals over complex schemes, there have been very few missed tackles in the first two games.
The Bad: Fumbles. Can't have 'em. An Auburn coach once said, "better to have died a young boy than to fumble this ball". I've got a feeling that the offensive backfield is going to have a new appreciation for that quote after Coach Gran runs them through a week of practice. Maybe he'll make them carry around a pink football to class this week, or wear a baby bib through the Sewell Hall chow line. Whatever it is, it had better work for their sakes. If there is one thing coaches can't stand, it's putting the ball on the ground. Auburn was never in danger of losing to USM, but had they not had the fumbles it would have been out of reach by halftime.
Receiver play. Although improved over last week, I'd give the receivers a solid C+ this week, there is still a lot to be desired from that position. Guys, we need to see a little more success in getting separation from defenders. Also, there are still some issues with drops. There were some solid performances turned in, most notably Tommy Trott and Montez Billings, but no one really stands out. When your "go to" guy is a former walk on it says something about this unit (and it's not a positive something - no knock at Rod Smith). This is an area that is going to have to improve if we are to be successful on offense.
The Take Away Message: Two games in and we are 2 - 0. That's a better start than last year. Still, the road is long and winding and there is much room in which to improve. The thing that gives me hope is the apparent strength of our defense and special teams. These areas appear to be very good. I mean SEC-championship-good. What we need now is for this offense to come together, and we could be in for a very fun ride. Given that this spread eagle is such a departure from anything we've seen in the past, it should be no surprise that it didn't take off like a ball of butcher knives rolling downhill. Personally I have my reservations (I'd rather see us pound it in a heavy I-set formation on short yardage and when inside the 5). That said, I'm willing to give it a chance... At least through September.
